The Emerging Arts Leaders Symposium (EALS) at American University is an annual meeting for students and young professionals who work in the arts. It provides opportunities to discuss issues, unique or universal, which affect arts organizations, as well as the opportunity to pick the minds of leaders in the field.

Realizing that there was no forum for emerging arts leaders and arts management graduate students to collaborate, network, and discuss issues, Michelle Grove, MA, arts management '08, proposed the first Emerging Arts Leaders Symposium in 2008. Each year, EALS is organized and produced by an Executive Committee of graduate students enrolled in the Arts Management program.

Current Partnerships include Americans for the Arts, the Americans for the Arts Emerging Leaders Network, and Emerging Arts Leaders DC. These partnerships allow participants of EALS to expand their professional networks.

The sixth annual Emerging Arts Leaders Symposium will be the official kick-off to Arts Advocacy Day. Arts Advocacy Day, an event produced by Americans for the Arts, brings together a broad cross section of America's cultural and civic organizations to underscore the importance of developing strong public policies and appropriating increased public funding for the arts. Participants attend meeting with their respective Congressional representatives to speak their minds about the importance of the arts in America.

For more information about the symposium, email auartsymposium@american.edu or visit the website: www.american.edu/cas/arts-management/eals. The event will occur throughout the entire Katzen Arts Center.